He competed in eight Olympic Games from 1948 to 1988, being one of only four persons ever (the others are sailor Ben Ainslie and athletes Carl Lewis in the long jump and Al Oerter in the discus) to win four consecutive individual gold medals (1948, '52, '56, '60), first time in a Firefly, subsequently in Finns.
Billy Mills' upset victory in the 10,000 meters in 1964, the legendary leap of 29’2-1/2 by Bob Beamon in the long jump, the (third and) fourth gold medal in the discus by Al Oerter, the 100 meters sprint world record of 9.9 seconds by Jim Hines, Tommie Smith’s gold medal win in the 200 meters in 19.8 seconds, and Lee Evans’ world record (43.8 seconds) in the 400 meters were among the many Olympic highlights achieved when Jordan was coach.